Claiming a Slice of Happiness: The Things which Place a Smile on My Face

As a teenager who was literally born 'to moan' (thanks to my more-irritating-than-possible brother's statements, which have unfortunately been permanently inscribed into my head) and is quicker than an Olympic athlete to complain about whatever my problems may be - running out of oh-so-perfect red apples at the weekend probably wouldn't count as a full-on disaster in the majority of people's eyes, yet that fact still doesn't prevent me from flying into panic mode whilst clad in kitten-patterned pyjamas - you would possibly burst out laughing and allow saltier-than-sea tears to stream down your face at the thought of my claiming a cake-sized slice of happiness all for myself since I don't particularly make it easy to appreciate, uh, constant downpours of misery-inducing rain and the eighteen bars of Ivory Coast dark chocolate which my mum bought for me during a supermarket promotion, one of which is already being eyed up by my unnormally greedy brother.

Yes, letting a square of pure indulgence melt inside my mouth provokes a hint of pleasure to spread around my body when I've switched to relax mode and flicking through fashion magazines which come free with the newspaper on Sunday afternoons is welcomed with outstretched arms after dedicating more than an hour to moisturizing my drier-than-desert feet which sadly have a tendency to reek of smelly cheese - a food which I forcibly avoid at all costs unless a scrunched-up face and a pale complexion quickly turning the colour green is your rather sick idea of entertainment - but, as with many things in the ever-so-complicated means of living which we iTunes-listening humans refer to as life, there will always be certain aspects and interests which will grab our attention quicker than another dreaded re-run of the aged Carry On films.

OK, you needn't guess which activities hold my concentration for a longer period than an hour spent studying the best method of creaming a waist-expanding cake - writing on paper, typing on an oh-too-slow laptop, threatening to lose my sanity when football is all but discussed and watched during the whole weekend, etc - but I've come to realize that hobbies are definitely not the end- and be-all of what unleashes the largest amount of happiness into our lives: from applying a layer of liquid eyeliner as thick as whipped cream in a style which would somehow receive a seal of approval from my semi-make-up artist, semi-baker mum to my lucky stars granting my wishes of stroking a particularly jolly Benny (a.k.a Hissy Kitty, who retreats into the comfort of his beloved monkey toy after a long day spent in the sausage-scented kitchen), I could lose count of the countless things which place a crooked, yet joyful smile on my lips! And it is only when I sit down in my chair (the fake leather covers of which are starting to get ripped, though in quite a startling manner like my torrentous mood) that I can immerse myself in an ocean of appreciation for everything which brings me joy during those harder-than-ever times in my life, so today I have constructed a list of all things (well, what I am able to remember at around nine thirty on a cloudy Saturday morning) which play seemingly insignificant, yet deeply meaningful roles in the manic eyes of a half-asleep teenager.

Everyone, as I have probably declared for the one hundredth or so time, is different and so my ideas of happiness may strike you as unintelligibly bizarre, but I've grown used to standing out of the crowd for steering clear of donning bubblegum pink Crocs and endorsing my passion for cut-price boxes of blackberries as I see a member of the local Weightwatchers club seek pleasure from the container of a spicy-flavoured Pot Noodle in the corner of my watchful eye: why should circumstances change for my views of engaging in Jelly Babies-infused excitement and expressing profound gratitude in return for being the recipient of law-themed novel? Anyway, here goes:

1. Playing with over-excited kittens: Before the thought even dares to cross your mind, my two five-month old kitten, affection-seeking Bart (who has remarkably mastered the skill of curving his pouting lips into a half-smirk, half-cheeky smile, which is reminiscent of my former 'Jelly Belly' pal, Jerry) and timid Benny - who, unlike his slightly chunkier brother, has been draped in numerous layers of admirable beauty, most noticeably with his silkier-than-silk (sorry if that hardly makes any sense!) fur coat - have not developed a worrying addiction to sugary cans of Red Bull, despite their remarkable levels of endless energy. From the moment they are carried down the stairs in their Leapfrog green basket to their second home (in other words, the glorious land of food awaits in the form of an ordinary kitchen) to the time they return to their initially tidy bedroom, Bart and Benny are bursting with excitement whenever they participate in energetic games around the rooms, which usually results in giving me a headache as I'm always unable to keep up with the playful pair!
Out of the two, Bart definitely plays up to his role of attention-seeker because of his overwhelming confidence, which sometimes has a tendency to overflow into the disliked form of cockiness if he fails to behave as calmly as his quieter brother, Benny. At the moment, Bart particularly enjoys racing around the kitchen in a frantic search for a small red ball (no, no, I'm not referring to the giantiac spot getting ready to burst on my inflamed chin!) and even Benny gets a massive sense of enjoyment from joining his brother from time to time, so I feel immensely pleased that the pair have blossomed right in front of my eyes - and also magically transformed into larger and more sociable creatures - within the space of six or so weeks since my family adopted them from an animal rescue centre.
Watching my two new babies play and enjoy the attention they constantly receive from myself makes me just about want to explode with happiness because it means the entire world to me - who cares about recording the latest episode of juicier-than-ever Revenge if two fun-loving kittens represent a wonderful sense of euphoria in my life? Well, I would hope that I could grab my hands onto both because I do need a small break from handling a kitten more excitable than an One Direction fan claiming tickets for a concert from time to time. And stop draining my parents' bank account to buy numerous boxes of plasters when Benny chooses to take a swipe at my already-cut hand.


2. Watching a beautiful sunset: Yeah, this one will probably strike you as the most boring representation of obtaining happiness, but what better way to drain my Canon camera of battery than to snap up countless pictures of a glorious sunset?
Like many things, falling in love with the wonderful sight of a setting sun may only interest girls, but I just can't help sighing happily as I see a long, sunny day slip away in the most beautiful of endings: skies resembling colourful scoops of raspberry ice cream and orange clouds as fluffy as sundaes topped with whipped cream provoke a stream of happiness to spread through my veins and ignite a peacefully burning fire to warm my whole body, which comes to an abrupt stop whilst gazing outside a half-open window.
I somewhat prefer the sight of the sun during the winter - obviously when I'm not sitting in the front seat of the car and run the risk of being blinded by overly bright sunshine - because it's beauty is more subdued, yet it still tells a more remarkable story and captivates my attention completely. In twenty or so years' time, I hope that part of myself still appreciates poking my head out of a window - along with running the risk of catching a chill from the ice cold temperatures - and being astounded by a sunset as though I had never set eyes upon one in my entire life. And oh, maybe I could be madly in love with an oh-so-handsome boyfriend by then who would take his eyes off the football results on his phone for a moment or two to enjoy the jubilant end of the day with me. So I can hope.

3. Hearing my dad hum tunelessly. Part of myself feels torn over this one - do I really love the over-played tune which my dad always hums whilst I'm trying to concentrate on finishing a Sudoku puzzle or does it push me over the oh-too-dangerous edge due its powerful tendency to annoy? I don't know, but I think that my dad has been humming for so many years that I have somewhat grown immune to being inflicted by its powers to irritate me immensely; bearing in mind that being forced to watch football or clean the kittens' litter tray are my main two options on a Sunday afternoon, listening to Dad's tune is pretty much a gift from the miserable grey sky, despite its lack of potential popularity on YouTube. If Dad knows what that website is.

And as my wrists are beginning to ache intensely after dedicating ninety minutes to my frustratingly slow laptop, I'll finish it off at number 4 - enjoy!

4. Chocolate: Only one perfect word had to declare my passion for raw cocoa beans and smooth, delicious texture: without chocolate, how would I feel inspired to unleash my hidden devilish side and steal a blackcurrant Jelly Baby from my brother's bag of sweets? Chocolate, without a doubt, is an inspiration and a potential muse, though it possibly don't quite fit the bill like a Texan supermodel or painfully gorgeous actress. Three paragraphs needn't be used to express my love for the tasty treat because only a few sentences can describe how much I enjoy every single mouthful without boring my readers to a cocoa-induced death! Forget swimming with dolphins or bobbing my head along to a piano solo on the Minecraft game: chocolate, alongside revisiting childhood films as a spot-faced teen and kicking my brother in the leg with a strength I never knew existed, creates a happier atmosphere and secures my elation like a long-desired purchase of a Prada handbag.

And as I claim my hands upon a larger-than-imaginable slice of chocolate cake (in my dreams for now until my birthday in a fortnights' time), a pint-sized amount of happiness has been enjoyed: what will you do with yours?